Panel to study reopening teen clinics
Bill Donovan
Staff Writer
GALLUP — The Gallup-McKinley County School Board plans to revisit
the issue of teen clinics operating out of the
Crownpoint and Thoreau high schools.
The board, in a special meeting last week, agreed to set up a committee
made up of officials from the school district, the Navajo Nation and
the Indian Health Service to determine if there was some way the teen
clinics could be reopened in the schools.
The clinics were closed last month after the board refused to approve
a request by IHS doctors operating the clinic to expand their services.
Most of the discussion at the board meeting centered around the request
to be allowed to provide contraceptives to students without first
getting the permission of the student's parents.
On a motion by board member Annie Descheny, the board decided just
to shut down the clinics at the schools altogether.
Descheny was also criticized after the meeting by supporters of the
clinic for shutting down the debate on the subject and not allowing
IHS personnel or clinic supporters a chance to talk.
Descheny said last week that she had spent a lot of time since that
meeting discussing the issue with parents, chapter officials and tribal
leaders.
"I think we need to send the correct information. We did not
shut down the clinics. The IHS is still funding the clinics at the
Crownpoint Hospital," she said.
But she said that the talks she had with various people indicates
that there should be more discussion about whether the teen clinics
should be allowed to reopen at the schools and if so, under what kind
of guidelines.
One of those she met with, she said, was the tribe's vice president,
Taylor McKenzie, who served as a doctor with IHS before his retirement.
She said she also met with officials of the two chapters and a number
of parents.
"As a result of these meetings, I think we should establish a
committee to come up with a recommendation about the clinics,"
she said.
She stressed that the parents she talked to were adamant about one
thing they did not want the schools to hand out contraceptives to
their children without the parent's permission.
Although the law in New Mexico allows this, Descheny pointed out that
this is contrary to tribal laws and the board tries to comply with
tribal law as much as possible.
School Superintendent Robert Gomez said that McKenzie has agreed to
serve on the committee. He added one of the things the committee will
look at is the legal issues over conflicts between state and tribal
laws in these matters.
He said later that the creation of a committee will allow for the
possibility of some kind of compromise to resolve the dispute.
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Peabody case to test Navajo preference
Jim Maniaci
Diné Bureau
WINDOW ROCK — In a case considered to be an important test of
the Navajo preference act, the Navajo Labor Relations Commission may
get to the main point of a complaint by the Office of Navajo Labor
Relations against Peabody Western Coal Co. later this month.
The case began in April 1998 when, during a reorganization, the subsidiary
of the St. Louis, Mo.-based coal corporation terminated workers, including
Navajos, at the Kayenta and Black Mesa mines. The layoffs continued
until October 1998.
From July to November 1998 individual complaints of violating the
Navajo Preference in Employment Act were filed with the ONLR. Compliance
officers conducted their investigations of the 34 complaints from
July 1998 to May 1999.
Since then, eight of the individuals have either been rehired, retired
or found other jobs.
When the case went to the commission on Nov. 6, the two sides asked
for more time to try to come to a settlement. The commission gave
them until Dec. 11 to settle on dollar amounts and reinstatements,
allowing a full week to hear the 26 Navajos and 13 company officials
as witnesses.
But the panel kept the gag order about identifying the 39 witnesses
that the company was granted on Oct. 5, although lawyers for both
sides have discussed them and exchanged information in negotiations.
On the first day the company introduced an 11th-hour surprise motion
to dismiss the case because Peabody believed the ONLR could not file
a class action complaint. ONLR Director Timothy Joe replied the next
day the act allows the ONLR, on its own, to file this type of complaint
with the commission.
On the third day the five-member commission allowed another 30 days.
Commissioners also decided the ONLR should be represented by the Navajo
Attorney General's Office and allowed several weeks for a formal written
opposition to the company's motion, with Peabody being given time
after that to reply to the tribal response.
In the initial complaint, the ONLR charged the company provided no
notice before laying off the Navajo workers, violated the act by terminating
Navajos who were equally qualified as the non-Navajos kept on the
job and hired or transferred in non-Navajos without properly advertising
the openings.
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Grand jury cases include theft, robbery
Tom Purdom
Staff Writer
GRANTS — Theft from a church organization, burglary, robbery,
selling drugs and driving while intoxicated were all part of recent
Cibola County grand jury cases.
In an alleged embezzlement case, Kristin Kruse-Hill, an employee of
Christian Community Corporation, is charged with stealing about $400
from the religious organization.
Kruse-Hill, 34, of 224 Monroe, Grants, was indicted by the grand jury
in December for reportedly taking the money on June 6. According to
the indictment, she had been entrusted with the money when she embezzled
it. The Christian Community Corporation is in Grants.
If convicted of the crime and sentenced to the maximum amount allowable
under the law, Kruse-Hill could face up to 18 months in prison and/or
a fine of up to $5,000.
Ramon Martinez, 33, of 313 Elena St., Grants, was indicted for burglary
of a commercial building and larceny over $250 in a case that stems
from the April 14 break-in of a storage building at 712 Steward in
Grants. The indictment states that Martinez went into the building
and took two chain saws and five tires. Both crimes are fourth-degree
felonies. If found guilty and sentenced to the maximum on each charge,
Martinez faces up to three years in prison and/or fines up to $10,000.
The grand jury also indicted Rudy Gonzales, 42, of 1218 Bratton, Grants,
for trafficking a controlled substance and use or possession of drug
paraphernalia. According to the indictment on Dec. 5, Gonzales allegedly
had heroin on him with the intent to transfer it to another person,
a second-degree felony. When he was arrested, law enforcement officers
also found drug paraphernalia on him.
Gary Armijo, 38, of Grants was indicted for aggravated driving while
intoxicated, driving while his license was suspended or revoked, failing
to carry proof of financial responsibility and failure to maintain
a traffic lane. He was stopped by Grants Police on Sept. 29 and the
charge was upgraded from driving while intoxicated to aggravated driving
while intoxicated because Armijo refused to take a chemical test.
All of the charges are misdemeanors.
Earl Betone Jr., 32, of Cuba, was indicted for aggravated driving
while intoxicated and driving while his license was suspended or revoked.
He was stopped by a Cibola County Sheriff's deputy on Jan. 9, 1999.
Betone was charged with aggravated driving while intoxicated because
he had a blood-alcohol concentration of .16 when he was arrested.
Thomas Edward Bittel, 23, of Grants, was indicted by the grand jury
on a charge of robbery. According to the indictment Bittle allegedly
robbed an Allsup's of $65. He reportedly threatened the female clerk
on Oct. 12 to get the money.
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Grants falls to Show Low, 61-50
Santiago Ramos
Staff Sports Writer
ST. JOHNS, Ariz. — Missed layups down the stretch proved costly
as Grants fell to Show Low 61-50 Saturday afternoon during the St.
Johns Holiday Invitational.
In a consolation game, Pinon watched a commanding 21-point lead vanish
before finishing strong to put Red Mesa away 66-56 in a consolation
game.
Grants, 4-4 will face archrival Gallup Thursday at 8 p.m. in the opening
round of the Gallup Invitational. Pinon, 10-7, will travel to Chinle
Wednesday while Red Mesa, 8-7, will be off until Wednesday, Jan. 10
when it plays at Valley Sanders.
Show Low 61, Grants 50
"We missed three layups," Grants coach Gerald Horacek said.
"We missed layups against Alchesay as well. But today the big
guys (Jason Stock and Josh Sprung) killed us inside. We couldn't stop
them and we had to fouled down the stretch. But our players played
hard every night."
Show Low broke open a close 13-11 lead with a 11-2 run. The Pirates
cut the lead down to six points by half-time on successive treys by
Kyle James and Joe Ross.
Grants ran off a 11-0 blitz to start the second half with five players
helping out, to move into the lead, 35-30.
But Show Low stopped the Pirate run to retake the lead at 36-35 on
a pair of inside scores by Sprung and another bucket by Daniel Wortma.
The Pirates were within two points, 48-46, with two minutes remaining
in the game before the Cougars pounded the ball inside to their two
post players, Stock and Sprung, to put away the win.
Sprung scored off a fast break and Stock nailed a pull-up jump shot
and Sprung came right back to hit an inside shot along with a free
throw as the Cougars surged into front 57-46 with 55 seconds left
in the game. Show Low added four free throws as Grants was forced
to foul.
Grants was outshot by Show Low from the field. The Pirates hit on
18-of-51 shots for 35 percent shooting while the Cougars made 25-of-53
for 47 percent. The taller Cougars outrebounded the Pirates, 26 to
19, in a crucial state.
The Pirates played their entire bench with a total of 11 players scoring.
Joe Ross led the way with 13 points with Kyle James with nine.
Show Low's top scorers were Stock with 19 points, including eight
in the fourth period. Sprung added 14 with six in the fourth period.
Doug Mathias chipped in 10 points.
Horacek says he's looking forward to Thursday's rematch against Gallup.
"We have to shoot better," Horacek said. "We played
them tough. Their big guys hurt us."
Horacek said he was glad his team was able to get into the St. Johns
Invitational at the last minute after being left out of the Kirtland
Invitational.
"We played three quality teams and we got to see different competition,"
Horacek said. "This will prepare us for district."
Pinon 66, Red Mesa 56
Pinon coach Mark Hall said he was impressed with Red Mesa, a future
conference opponent next year, and its determined second-half comeback.
"They (Red Mesa) stepped it up when they had to," Hall said.
"Red Mesa beat us here at St. Johns last year and they just lost
to Hopi by two points. This is the best Red Mesa team I've seen in
the last 10 years. They have five to seven kids that can come in and
play."
With sizzling shooting (10-of-15) from the field in the first period,
the Eagles surged to a comfortable 22-10 lead. Pinon guard Robryan
Wartz, who finished with 19 points, accounted for half of his team's
point production in the first period with 11 points.
Pinon blew the game wide open with a furious 15-0 run as Fernando
Begay, who tallied 17 points, fueled the outburst, tallying 11 of
Pinon's 17 points in the second quarter as the Eagles took a 39-22
half-time lead.
Red Mesa's Theus Begay, who led all scorers with 20 points and two
treys, had nine of his points by half-time for the Redskins.
Pinon's once comfortable 21-point lead had all but dwindled in the
third period with Red Mesa outplaying the quickly fading Eagles. Red
Mesa reeled off 10 unanswered points with Uryan Shorty, who finished
with 18 points, nailing four quick baskets during the run.
Hitting on 8-of-14 from the field in the third period, Red Mesa had
pulled to within five points, 45-40, as the Redskins outscored the
Eagles, 18-6.
Red Mesa tied the game at 51-all for the first time since the opening
minute on a pair of free throws by Jackson Brossy along with a free
throw by Shorty with 4:18 left in the game.
"We told them to tighten up on defense," Red Mesa coach
Lee T. Begay said of his team's second half comeback. "But at
the end we took some chances and we threw the ball away. But I was
real happy the kids came back."
But Pinon regained its composure and finished off the game with a
strong flurry.
Randy Whitehair nailed a key three-pointer from the top of the key
while Fernando Begay popped a short jumper. The Eagles grabbed a seven-point
cushion after a fast break layup by Wartz with 2:14 remaining.
The Redskins broke the 7-0 Eagle run after Shorty drilled a trey.
But Pinon ran off four quick scores with a pair by Anthony Burke along
with scores by Begay and Earlwin Thomas that quickly pushed Pinon's
advantage to 66-54.
Red Mesa's Karlett Tsosie scored off a rebound that made the final
score, 66-56.
"It's a credit to the kids for coming back," Hall said.
"In the past our kids would have given up after the score got
tied. This team has a lot of composure."
Next year, Pinon will be moving down from the 3A to the 2A to play
with Red Mesa.
"Going down to the 2A will help Pinon a lot," Hall said.
Pinon was led by Robryan Wartz with 19 points, Fernando Begay added
17 and Earlwin Thomas chipped in 12.
Red Mesa's top scorers were Theus Begay with 20 points and Uryan Shorty
with 18.
Pinon shot 57 percent, 31-of-54, from the field while Red Mesa hit
on 24-of-56 for 43 percent.
Pinon had played Red Mesa earlier in December at home but the game
was canceled after a power outage with the Eagles leading 14-8.
Free throws help Chinle capture title
Abelita Rose Freeland
Staff Sports Writer
PINETOP LAKESIDE, Ariz. — Free throws 3-of-4 on technicals against
the Santa Rita coach helped the Chinle Wildcats come from behind to
take the Cellular One White Mountain Holiday Classic championship
at Blue Ridge High School, 59-56, Saturday afternoon.
"I think this is a real confidence booster for us. We did good
but I think we knew could beat (Santa Rita)," said Chinle head
coach Doug Clauschee.
"We did real good. It was a close game with a 4A school,"
said Corey Terrell, who was named tournament MVP. "It was good
team work and the run and gun helped a lot. It's fast and it gets
them (Eagles) where they least expect it."
Chinle, which improves to 16-3 with the victory, shot 77 percent from
the free throw line (17-of-22) in the win.
The Wildcats entered the final quarter down 48-43, but gradually got
back into the game. They eventually took a 55-54 lead on a pair free-throws
by Radley Smiley following a technical foul that was called on the
Santa Rita coach for badgering the referees.
Smiley then went 1-for-2 at the line to put his team up by two, 56-54,
on another technical foul called on the coach for standing up and
yelling at the referees.
Wildcat Loren Garcia scored another point on a bonus free-throw to
put the lead at 57-54. Jimmy Skeet added two more free throws for
Chinle.
In the first quarter, the Wildcats jumped out to a 4-0 lead on back-to-back
plays from Skeet assisting Pat Ashley and Garcia going in for a layup.
Chinle finished the quarter ahead 16-13, when Skeet sank a free throw
and Smiley a jump shot.
The Eagles came back in the second quarter to take a 35-29 lead at
the half keyed by a 15-point run. By the end of the quarter Santa
Rita led 35-29.
The third quarter startedstarted with a drive to the basket from Wildcat
Smiley, but Eagle Charles came back by making the first and only three-point
basket of the game.
Behind 38-31, Chinle's Garcia scored on an offensive rebound and Eagle
Armstrong answered right back with an offensive rebound as well.
Both teams went head-to-head the rest of the quarter. A jump shot
followed by an assist to Skeet by Corey Terrell brought the Wildcats
within five, 48-43, going into the final period.
"The boys played hard. They worked as a team and there just wasn't
Jimmy Skeet scoring. They all stepped up. Everyone needed to step
up, not just one person and everyone came through," Clauschee
said.
Wildcat Smiley led the team with 18 points and went 10-for-12 at the
line. Skeet finished with 13 points and four steals. Terrell who walked
away with 12 points, 11 rebounds and four steals.
Chinle made 21-of-47 field goal (45 percent) attempts, and 0-of-9
on three-point attempts.
Santa Rita shot 24-of-41 from the field for 59 percent, 1-of-7 from
three-point range and 5-of-12 at the line (42 percent).
Leading Santa Rita in the losing effort was Charles with 15. Del Frazier
and Wade Huff both ended up with 11 points and Armstrong finished
with 10 points and eight rebounds.
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Tuba City motel sets grand opening
Larry Di Giovanni
Staff Writer
TUBA CITY, Ariz. — Navajo Nation President Kelsey Begaye and
a large number of tribal delegates are expected to attend Friday's
grand opening celebration of the Tuba City Quality Inn.
The sale of the Quality Inn from the Babbitt Brothers Trading Co.
to the Navajo Nation for about $5 million was finalized Nov. 30. The
historic property includes the Hogan Restaurant, Tuba City Trading
Post and an RV park.
The grand opening is scheduled for 10 a.m. Friday at the hotel, with
a luncheon to follow. The public is invited.
The registered owner of the motel complex will be the Navajo Nation
Hospitality Enterprise. Monument Hospitality Inc. of Phoenix, owned
by Stan and Cindy Sapp, will manage the property under NNHE direction...
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Nine chapters get $2 million
Jim Maniaci
Diné Bureau
WINDOW ROCK — More than $2 million has been awarded for construction
and assistance by the Navajo-Hopi Land Commission to help relocated
Navajos.
On Dec. 19, the commission voted 8-0-1 to grant the $2,022,320 for
nine chapters' projects. The projects are worth up to $250,000 each
in three agencies, plus two program requests.
The awards end almost two years of work.
The awards include:
Leupp Chapter $250,000 to build new homes and repair 20 others.
Coal Mine Mesa Chapter $250,000 toward a new chapter house.
Low Mountain Chapter $250,000 toward a 2,864-square-foot senior citizens
center...
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Search continues for escaped felon
Tara Drolma
Staff Writer
GRANTS — Acoma Pueblo made the nightly news on Albuquerque
TV stations last weekend, including aerial shots of what looked
like a SWAT team surrounding a house in a manhunt for escaped felon
Byron Shane Chubbuck of Albuquerque.
However, he was not found and local authorities were uncertain about
whether Chubbuck had actually been in the area.
Acoma Police Chief Bill Kellog said there was a house fire at Acoma
about 3 a.m. Saturday. When officers responded they found an abandoned
car stuck in the dirt road. A routine check of the registration
showed the car had been reported stolen from Grants. Grants officers
told Acoma police the owner of the car had seen the person who took
the vehicle and the owner said that the suspect looked like Chubbuck.
Video footage from KOB-TV in Albuquerque showed what looked like
officers cautiously approaching the burning house. The written report
on the station's website police SWAT teams and U.S. marshals searched
the area...
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'Elves' visit Hopi elders for the holidays
Stan Bindell
Special to the Independent
KEAMS CANYON, Ariz. — Students with Hopi High School's National
Honor Society turned into elves over the holidays and delivered a
record amount of food to the elderly.
The teens loaded 195 bags of food and delivered them to elders in
the 12 Hopi villages. One hundred blankets also accompanied the gifts
of food, donated by Hopi Tribal Vice Chairman Phillip Quochytewa's
office.
"Esqualle," Ida Mae Murdock yelled, using the Hopi word
for thank you. Meltona McCartney expressed it differently, saying,
"This is my lucky day."
Nathan Pecusa gave the gift-bearing elves a history lesson, telling
them about running away from Phoenix Indian High School twice before
going to work for the BIA Roads Department for 31 years...
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Board rules against Aneth man
Jim Maniaci
Diné Bureau
WINDOW ROCK — The new Aneth Chapter secretary-treasurer, Jamie
Harvey, should not have been on the ballot, the Navajo Nation's
Office of Hearings and Appeals has ruled.
The other candidate, Roger Atcitty, challenged Harvey's Nov. 7 election
on the grounds that he registered to vote 12 days after the Oct.
6 deadline. And since being a registered voter is one of the requirements
to be a candidate, Atcitty was ineligible, Hearing Officer Karen
Etcitty ruled.
Harvey had 10 days to appeal to the Navajo Supreme Court, which
has been on an extended holiday vacation schedule. As of Friday
he had not appealed.
After the appeal period, the Navajo Nation Council's Inter-Government
Relations Committee the interim election board since Aug. 2 will
be the body to declare the post vacant and call for a special election
to fill the four-year term of office...
Deaths
Carole Devlin
GALLUP — Services are pending for Carole F. Devlin, 57, and will
be announced at a later date.
Devlin died Dec. 30. She was born Sept. 11, 1943 in Los Angeles, Calif.
Rollie Mortuary is in charge of arrangements.
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